Sermon transcript:
Well, we are beginning a new series on First Corinthians and you can turn your Bibles there or we'll have the whole chapter. We'll read through it today. And this is probably going to turn out to be the longest series that we've ever done. Since I've been your pastor, we're going to probably go a chapter a week, we might be able to combine a couple of chapters. But here's the thing, it has such variety. First Corinthians has such variety. So there's never going to be if you were like, Okay, that was chapter one. What's Chapter Two gonna be about? Is it gonna be the same thing I heard last week? No. First Corinthians is one of those books that Paul in him writing it is really instructing us holistically and how to function and really takes us to kind of warts and all and shows us how to move forward as Christ followers. Well, again, I've already kind of said that this letter was written by Paul in around 55 ad.
And lots of problems in this church, lots of problems in the church at Corinth, you can go on an ancient map and kind of see where that was then and is today, but where there's lots of problems I want you to see over and over again, in this book, there's lots of grace, because one of the things that we know about ourselves once we live on this earth long enough is man, I've got some issues, and I need some help. And First Corinthians is going to help us with that. I know many of y'all get the email. And so I spent some time kind of thinking about how can I say in a paragraph, what First Corinthians is going to lead us through and why I think it's so pivotal in the life of our church right now. And here's what I wrote this paragraph this week with some obviously outside help in understanding the book. The city of Corinth was at the heart of an important trade route in the ancient world. Like many cities that thrive on trade, Corinth had a reputation for sexual immorality, religious diversity, and corruption. The church that Paul planted there floundered under all these influences. First Corinthians addresses many practical questions about the church concerning such things as spiritual gifts, marriage, food offered to idols and the resurrection. This book also calls for unification and encourages us to work in the Lord and shares with us how we are to love is that great chapter first Corinthians 13. We'll get there on love. But think about the description of what First Corinthians addresses. Does that sound familiar to any city that we may find? Or reside in? Yes, so many parallels to the first century, and to also the environment, the world that we find ourselves in today. So I want to get right into it. First Corinthians beginning in verse one. And here's what it said, This letter is from Paul, who's Paul, he was an apostle of God, he'll share that here in that first sentence. He used to be Saul, he had an experience with Jesus on the road to Damascus. In the book of Acts, you can read about that this letter is from Paul, chosen by the will of God. So who chose Paul to do this great task to what to be an apostle of Christ Jesus, and from our brother saw phonies, and that's probably a writer or a scribe. I'm writing to God's church in Corinth. So it's a real location that you and I can see if you have a Bible, it's in the back. You can look at maps until just about 55 ad, to you have been called by God to be his own holy people. He made you holy, by means of Christ Jesus, just as he did for all people everywhere who call him the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, their Lord and ours. May God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ give you grace and peace, I always thank my God for you and for the gracious gifts he has given you. Now that you belong to Christ Jesus, through Him, God has enriched your church in every way, with all of your elegant words and all of your knowledge. This confirms what I told you about Christ is true. Now you have every spiritual gift you need, as you eagerly await for the return of our Lord Jesus Christ. He will keep you strong to the end, so that you will be free from all blame on the day when our Lord Jesus Christ returns, God will do this for He is faithful to do what he says, And He has invited you into partnership with His Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord. Now a lot there. I'm going to try to break this down and go real slowly through it. But the first point I want us to see is, let's think how Christ centered. This is about our faith. Let's think Christ centered about our faith, because that's really where Paul starts out. I mean, in these nine verses, I want to go through this and I want you to see just how centered he is on Jesus. If you would, please go back to the sides and beginning in verse one of this chapter right here. So let's see the first one first thing you see here is that he is called by who to
be an apostle, called by who? By Jesus Christ Himself Christ centered. What is the one who has made them holy, the people of God, who made them holy, who by by who by means of who? Christ Jesus. Now the next slide, who is the who is the giver of all grace and peace who gave who gave this to us who gave this to, to us, Jesus Christ in Christ centered This is, who is the one and who Grace has been given. So you see it up here, but then now he has given you because you belong in Christ. Let's continue on it says, who is the source of all riches? Who through him? Go the next slide God has enrich. So who is who is the source of all riches Christ? Who's the subject of Paul's preaching? So who is the subject? This confirms what I told you about? Who? Who are we talking about here? Christ, who is the basis for Christian hope? Who is the basis for Christian hope? It is Jesus, who has all of history pointing towards go ahead and go from this day until when? What next slide? Who is all of this pointing to who we are waiting to return? Jesus? In the meantime, who has God invited us into partnership with Jesus, man, that's good. We got there at the end. I just want y'all to see just how Christ center the first point, I want to bring that back up, how Christ centered. This really is, and the implications for that. And I really want us to camp here and start here because well, first of all the letter does, but also there's gonna be a lot of hard things said in the next several weeks, and you're gonna see yourself in the Korean church like oh, okay, they struggle with sexual immorality, oh, I struggle are hamstrung. Or, oh, man, they struggle with singleness. Oh, well, so do i or they struggle with marriage? Oh, so do I, I struggle to understand how to love my closest neighbor, those in my household, and also my literal neighbors. Oh, so today, I struggled to understand prophetic giftedness and what it means that we have the spiritual gifts within the church. And you're going to find the Corinth church does too. So if we don't have this foundation, this basis of understanding that our assurance that God's got us does not reside, a rests on who we are, what we've done, but who Jesus is and what he's done. That's why I say we have to make sure we think Christ centered about our faith. It's not about me, and myself and I and what I can do and all that, for sure, we have a response to God's good grace. But it's just that idea that is so Christ centered here. And these first nine verses, here's the implication. And I think maybe you saw them in these verses. First verse was that we are genuinely saved. Let's go back through those verses. Go back to verse one. Here, I want you to see this, that what that we have been called by God. So first thing I want you to see is we're genuinely saved. Go to the next slide, that we are in rich last word right there. So we really are endowed with what next slide, spiritual riches, that we're securely establish, because of who Christ is and what he's done, that we're spiritually gifted, and that we can be prophetically alert. So that you and I, when we walk around our community, we begin to see both good things and we begin to see darkness and we're not surprised by it. And we can enter into pain, whether it's our own pain, or our neighbors pain, or just out in the communities pain, because we understand who Christ is and what he's done in us. And we're learning how to love. So again, first point, let's be Christ centric, or Christ centered about our faith. Let's look at the middle section here beginning in verse 10. It says, this right here, I appeal to your dear brothers and sisters, right? And those are, those are familial terms. We understand what family is, we're a, we're a family of God. That's what this whole series is about. It's teaching us how to function as a congregation as a New Testament Church believers. While we're here, I appeal to you Dear Brothers and Sisters, by the authority of our Lord Jesus Christ, to live in harmony with each other. Let there be no divisions in the church rather be of one mind united in thought and purpose, for some members of Chloe's household have told me about your corals, my dear brothers and sisters, some of you are saying, I am a follower of Paul, others are saying I'm a follower of Apollo's or I follow Peter or I follow only Christ. Has Christ been divided into factions? Was I Paul crucified for you? Were any of you baptized in the name of Paul? Of course not. I think God that I did not baptize any of you. Except Cypress and guys, for now. We, for now, no one can say that they were baptized in my name. Oh, yes, I did also baptized the household of Stephanus. But I don't remember baptizing anyone else for Christ.
didn't send me to baptize but to preach the good news, and not with clever speech for fear that the power of cross would lose its power.
Next point we need to see here is focus on exalting Christ. Focus on exalting Christ. That's where we need to put our, our thoughts on. Because if not, if we start turning around and asking, Okay, who gave me the last good best advisor, who's my favorite communicator, who's my favorite teacher, or, let's see how I can pit one against the other, or I don't really like sitting next to this person, I don't like the way they look or do things I don't like the way that impacts me in my thinking, that will get us all bent out of shape. Every time he's talking to a local community. You think about this in Corinth, the church he established, it was probably 100, maybe 200 people, there's no such thing as a mega church in those days. And he's talking about this whole idea of how can I help you promote unity, you can say the negative aspect, which is don't be divisive, or you can state it positively, which is focus on the main thing and the main thing, because what does partnership mean? It means being pulled in the same direction, you have a partner, if you have like a, if you have like a like a pair of horses or oxen or whatever I know, we don't live in an agricultural society anymore. But we understand that whole idea of of going the same direction, together. The key to promoting unity, and avoiding divisiveness is the focus on Christ instead of exalting human leaders or your your favorite, whoever. And that's his point here. He's not minimizing baptism, he loved baptism, we do baptism, we baptize in the name of Jesus Christ. But who doesn't matter. There's some sort of like special touch about who actually does the baptism know that you have your church leaders who lead through that. But if you notice, even last week, if there were certain, you know, dads, and we've had certain moms that they, they they take seriously their role as the spiritual leader in the home. We allow them to take part and actually do the baptizing. Why? Because I don't want to sit at the end of the day that oh, okay, well, my baptism was special, because, you know, that special pastor or that special, you know, Pope or priest or whatever, you know, he was the one who did that, or she was the one who did that. Know, the purpose is to focus on exalting Christ. In doing so we are driven to the cross. And it promotes, always promotes humility. Rather than arrogance and rivalry, I want you to hear that we don't have our crosses set up anymore. We may, in the future have different crosses kind of behind us in the room. So we can focus on this. But it's so important that we understand that none of us can be arrogant at the foot of the cross. Amen. I mean, that's why we have these kneelers here, if you come and do yourself and humble yourself, before the mighty hand of God, and before Jesus and what He did for you and for me on the cross and what that blood meant that was shed for us there. That takes away arrogance, doesn't it, it takes away divisiveness, it takes away rivalry because we understand that we're all level, at the foot of the cross. And that's what's so important. We talk about exalting Christ. And we're gonna get into this in the next section. And Terry already talked about with the wisdom and the foolishness and, you know, trying to be wise by God's standards, and not wise from the world standards. But I want you to I don't want you to see that the most important thing is exalting Christ. And when we exalt Christ, we're exalting who he is and what he did for us. That's why you can get to later on and it says, Man never boasts, but in the cross of Jesus Christ. He's like, Well, no, but you boasted and some other things. Paul, what do you mean here? He understands what was bought for him what was wrong for him at the cross? And He wants us to understand that as well. Does that make sense? Unity does not mean saying this. Look around. You look around El Paso. I love the beauty and the diversity of El Paso. I love the beauty and the diversity of our church in terms of different cultures and different ethnics in different races. And all that that is, is that is showing you it's a good picture of what we're to be about. We are united. But do we all like the same food? Do we all go the same path to work? Do we all sort of drive the same thing? Do we all sort of like the same family traditions? Do we all sort of do things a certain way? Do we all spend our money in the same way? No. So we're so diverse and all that and how we even think about ourselves, in El Paso and in the world, in the community at large? Do we all vote the same way? Same way. Now, we talked about that a couple of weeks ago, and how we should have principles for faith and politics knowing that we don't all vote the same way. But what are we united in church? We're united in this Christ. And if we focus on that everything else will take care of itself. And we're not ever going to achieve saying this. And I don't want to achieve saying this. What what Paul wants for the believers at Corinth and what I want as your pastor here at Life Church is that we have unity, unity, the beauty of being part of a local church is so beautiful, whether it's long or short. That's what was so neat about the baptisms last week and what we
experience in this church every single week is what's that we have people here for a season, we have people who are here for the long haul. And we're all in this together. And we understand that we need the church, we need the community, it keeps us from being isolated. Anyone want to go back to the days of COVID, where we're sitting in our rooms and staring at the walls and trying to figure out zoom and not able to talk and interact and to eat and to fellowship and enjoy one another. No, Christian should lead the way out of isolation to the community of each other. And that's what we're doing by your very presence here. Whether you're here in El Paso for a long time, or a short time. Otherwise, what will happen to all of us will all tend towards self and falsely believe that Jesus and I are right. Why don't we, even if you try to be a really, really good Christian, he's okay, I'm gonna, I'm going to read my Bible, and I'm going to study in my room, and I'm gonna, you know, I'm gonna listen to some sermons online, and I'm gonna, you know, do some some writing and journaling. That's all fine and good, I promote and love all those things. But if it's not done in the context of where you rub up against someone else, you and I will falsely believe that, that we're good, and that we're promoting unity, and that we're not divisive. But what happens as soon as you and I walk out of whatever study we've done, if you've ever prayed by yourself, or even read your Bible by yourself, what happens, not 20 minutes after you get up and leave your study, or you get up and leave your knees, you butt up against someone else, right? And someone rubs you the wrong way. And all of a sudden, we understand that we are not individualistic, isolated people, but that we're part of a community, community, in your little community, in your home and in your neighborhood and your workplace. And then you come to church on Sunday, we come to church on Sunday, because we gather as a community of believers, knowing man, I need you and you need me to sort of smooth out those rough edges so that we can continue to look and to focus on Christ. And that more of me, keeps getting further and further and further away until I am in glory. next passage here this last section of chapter one, beginning in verse 18, it says this right here, the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are headed to destruction, this is so true, but we who are being saved? No, it is the very power of God, as the Scriptures say, I will destroy the wisdom of the wise and discard the intelligence of the intelligence. So where does this leave the philosophers, the scholars, the world's brilliant debaters. God has made the wisdom of this world look foolish, since God in His wisdom saw to it that the world would never know him their human wisdom, he has used our foolish preaching to say those who believe it is foolish to the Jews who asked for signs from heaven. And it is foolish to the Greeks who seek human wisdom. So when we preach that Christ was crucified, the Jews are offended, and the Gentiles say it's all nonsense, but to those who are called by God to salvation, both Jews and Greeks, Christ is the power of God in the wisdom of God, this foolish plan of God is wiser than the wisest of human plans, and that God's weakness is stronger than the greatest human strength. Remember, dear brothers and sisters, that few of you are wise in the world's eyes, or powerful or wealthy when God called you instead, God chose things the world considers foolish, in order to shame those who think they are wise and he chose things that are powerless to shame those who are powerful, God chose things despised by the world thinks counted as nothing at all, and use them to bring nothing bring to nothing what the world considers important. As a result, no one can ever boast in the presence of God. Remember what I said there, no one can boast at the foot of the cross. God has united you with Christ Jesus for our benefit, God made him to be wisdom itself. Christ made us right with God, He made us pure and holy, and he freed us from sin. Therefore, as the scripture say, if you want to boast, boast only about the Lord, third and final point I wants to see this morning is that God chose the foolish things of this world to shame, the wise. Who, what were the what were some of the foolish things that you saw here? First thing that was was foolish was the preaching itself. Did you see that? That the preaching itself is considered foolish from the outside world looking in? I mean, you guys know this, when you were here in El Paso, when you drove to church this morning, you didn't have too much trouble. There wasn't much traffic on the road, right? Because, because why? Because 90% or whatever percent or 75 or 80% of everybody is still sleeping in the city. But you decided to do something that the world considers foolish, which is to gather among the people to worship an invisible god to to soak our minds and our hearts in truth, and to do that through preaching and worship. So preaching itself a while. Why was it such a stumbling block it was a stumbling block to the Jews. Why? Because they were looking for signs if you know anything about the New Testament there
We're always like, hey, Jesus drum up something so we know you're for real. And then that's what they were seeking. And now the signs didn't add up to what they wanted to see. So they're lying. And I'm rejecting that chief cornerstone, I'm rejecting that, that Jesus that savior. What did the Greeks think? Or the Gentiles or the non Jewish people? This is a bunch of nonsense, who follows a leader who died a criminal's death on a cross? And then rose three days later, it literally makes no sense that the preaching was foolishness. banali was the preaching. Did you see that in the verses that the message itself was thought foolish? So it wasn't only that the preaching was thoughtfulness, but this but that the message itself was thought foolish? Because why? It just doesn't make sense to worldly wisdom. It's counterintuitive. It's countercultural, that that why would why would you mess around with people who aren't what it sounds talks about this politically savvy or really financially well off, are really powerful. These are the ones whom Jesus loves to save and to grow in him. It's the opposite of the world. Right? Did you see that in those verses that none of us were of these these high statues, but he gave us the message. He entrusted a bunch of us, a bunch of us who just have you know, a car to and, and a roof over our head and enough food to get by and not much else. He's entrusted that with Corinth, and he entrusted the message of salvation with us Life Church here in El Paso in 2024. With us, and that's the third point I was trying to say is it wasn't just the foolishness of the preaching, it wasn't just the foolishness of the message. But it was, as I've already alluded to just the foolishness of the type of people that God was choosing to use in order to bring about this great movement of God. So when you consider all this and you consider what Christ has done for you, and for me,
it's just like God to do this, isn't it that he chooses what he chooses the things that the world ridicules, doesn't think that's important things to say, these are throwaway. These are these are throwaway people, this is a throwaway message, this is a throwaway gone. And what does he do? He shamed the wise, by what? By strengthening us by encouraging us so that now how do we have unity? And how are we promoting humility in our own lives? It tells us how by boasting only in Jesus, which was really all the points could be any part of this chapter. So church, you're in a good place, you're in a good place. Because what you are experiencing, what you're hearing is, if you are thinking, No, that is the answer to my problems. I've been one of those people who have drifted who's been away, who's gotten mired in sin. He's gotten all tore up all bent out of shape. I've been the one who said major mental illness, major sin problems, major sexual depravity, major financial turmoil, and you're saying that that's who Jesus came for. And you're saying that, then that's why you and I find this so appealing. Did you see what it said in there, it said that the whole idea that to those who are called, that's what we're trying to do here week in and week out is we're trying to present the clear message of the gospel, that Jesus Christ came into the world to save sinners, among whom I'm the chief for the foremost just quoting what Paul said, and that that is appealing to those who are called. So if you find yourself just drawn to this message drawn to new life and new birth, that's God's grace to you. But if you find yourself, I don't know about this, I need something with a little more pizzazz a little more, show them or I need some signs. Okay. Well, there's been people who've been there before they're called the Jewish people and Jewish leaders of his time and maybe today, or you're saying no, I just think this is all bunch of nonsense, a bunch of gooey goo I can figure out things through I can read certain books, I can go to certain health things, I can go to certain conferences, I can watch certain Netflix documentaries, I can do this. And I can kind of figure out and navigate a path for my life to achieve that which I want to achieve stability, money or, or relational, whatever power political otherwise is, okay, well, then you think it's a bunch of nonsense. But if you're hearing what I'm saying, right now, you're saying man out if that's true, Pastor, I want that Jesus you're talking about, then you're part of the select the few that are called. And that is good news for you and I this morning, if your heart is strangely warmed by this message of redemption, of the redeemed of those who are called and those who can find hope and faith in him, I pray that you would do so and you would respond. The altar is open, there's going to be the band to come back up and they're going to play a song. I just want you to think wherever you're at.
Need to boast in the Lord. What does that mean? Boasting Another way is to exalt and eat or to Glorian if you're glorying in anything else, exalting anything else boasting and anything else, then you and I have to know that that will also
really fail you or lead you to places you don't want to go. That doesn't mean you don't financially plan or you don't do things relationally I get all that. But I'm saying that flows from a heart that is exalting him. So that's what we're gonna do here in a minute. But the altar is open, you can come pray, you can pray in your seat. And so after I finished praying, we're gonna sing a song. And so whether you find yourself on the outside looking in, you're saying, Man, I want that Jesus that you're talking about you and I can all kneel at the foot of the cross, we're all in a level playing field at the feet of Jesus. Or you can say again, in your heart, oh, Lord made it be true of me, that I'm exalting and glorifying you, and not anything else. Let's pray.
Father, I pray for those under my care, those who are listening in later and I just pray that You would help us to do this to walk in this way.
In a time, and in a moment when there's so many other messages that seem somewhat appealing seems sort of right, but we find ourselves just desperate.
Because we've tried many of those other things, and they've been dead ends. So Father, I pray for those right now that are considering the claims of Christ. May you view them and you draw them. May you do what you've done for so many people in this church and throughout the centuries that that they would receive that they would receive you. And then I pray for the others who have received you but they're struggling right now. They're struggling with a host of things. They've come in with a lot of burdens. Help them to leave those burdens at the foot of you for the cross.
And then help them take up this call to exalt to boast and to glorify, only. We ask these things in Christ's name and for your glory. Amen.
